Warriors: Wind Storm
by Loafbud
Summary: [[The final sequel to Dovewing's Decision]] With Dovewing's story finally over, now is the time for her kits and her kits' kits to take the stand. A terrible storm is brewing in WindClan. Ignoring the news, as it was no problem to the other Clans, a dream foretells that this storm is far more dangerous than the flood. One thought lurches into mind: there may not be any survivors.
1. Prologue

_Claws curled into flesh as a_ black-and-white she-cat wriggled her small body to free herself from the vicious rogue she-cat's grip. The kittypet's blue eyes shone with fear, instantly locking with the attacker's piercing yellow ones. The white she-cat with orange splotches dug her claws in and never let go.

"What do you want?" grunted the black-and-white she-cat. "I live in peace!"

The she-cat dug her claws in deeper.

Flinching, the kittypet felt the she-cat's hot, rancid breath graze against her muzzle, like a deadly adder's hiss.

"You know about the Clans, do you?" hissed the she-cat. Satisfaction lit in her eyes. _Was this kittypet_ stupid _?_

The kittypet bared her teeth. "Why would you want to know them?"

A low growl rose from the rogue. "It is none of your business!" She swiped a paw across the kittypet, claws unsheathed.

Blood slowly dripped from the fresh scars across the kittypet's cheek. She cowered beneath the assaulter and flattened her ears against her head, her eyes round with fear.

Gratification poured down all over the rogue. _This is getting us nowhere_ , she thought, _but seeing a kittypet in discomfort is worthwhile…_

"Tell me where the Clans are!" The rogue she-cat knew where the Clans were; she just wanted to wear out the pathetic kittypet into being frightened of her.

The kittypet she-cat muttered something but the rogue couldn't quite hear it.

"What?" snarled the rogue, pulling her lips back into a snarl, revealing rows of yellow teeth.

"I _said_ let me go and I'll tell you where they live!" hissed the kittypet, louder this time.

Almost too loud.

Grunting, the rogue stepped backwards off of the defenseless kittypet. The black-and-white she-cat shook her pelt, the blood from the scar on her face splotching on the rogue's forepaws.

"I'll tell you where they are," meowed the kittypet stonily. "Just promise me one thing."

The rogue rolled her eyes. "What?" she meowed querulously.

"If you know a cat named Bramblestar, tell him that I said hello."

The rogue blinked. "I can't promise you that."

"Well," snorted the kittypet, scuffing her paws on the stony ground. "Do you want to know or not?"

The rogue's eyes turned to slits.

"Once you make it to the end of the Twolegplace," instructed the kittypet, "you will take a left and go through a thicket of trees. A forest is there. You should be able to hear a starling chirping in the air. Starlings always live near the entrances."

The rogue was growing impatient. _Hurry up, you mangy piece of crowfood!_

"…then you should be able to enter into—"

"Shut up!" sneered the rogue, cutting her off. "I'll find my own way." Turning, she trudged away from the kittypet and out of the vacant monster den. The rogue avidly wished for a bright-colored monster to trample over the pathetic kittypet with its round paws.

The kittypet stammered, uneasy paw steps approaching from behind. "Oh, but my Twolegs would miss your company!" meowed the kittypet, almost as if oblivious to the scratch mark that stung on her face. _She's acting all innocent now!_

Irritation burned in the rogue. She paused and turned around to face the kittypet. "I don't need the Twolegs," she meowed softly, her voice trickled with ice. "And the Twolegs don't need _me_."

"Tawny." The kittypet still scuttled after her as the rogue began walking away at a faster pace. "What happened to you?" Her eyes were pooled over with worry. "Why did you leave Twolegplace? I remember you when you were a young kit, not weaned yet. You would always come visit my garden and we'd play with a feathery Twoleg toy that hung from a tendril. It'd bounce and we'd hop trying to catch it. It'd tickle our noses and we'd mewl in triumph when we caught it. Do you remember those day?"

Revulsion roiled up in the rogue's belly. Tawny curled a corner of her lip in a disdained scowl. A shiver ran pass her spine. The days of being a young kittypet was fresh in her mind, haunting her like nightmares. The soft rocks in the den, the scents of Twoleg food, even that weird black plate that had Twolegs and monsters moving _inside_! Fresh hatred boiled in her belly. She pushed away that soothing comfort she had when being held by her Twoleg. Suddenly, images of a swinging Twoleg hind paw flashed dark in her mind. She could still feel the impact that the Twoleg hind paw had on her haunches. The force had nearly flung her across her garden. Blood welled from a bruise.

 _I've put_ all _my trust in Twolegs far too long too much!_

Fury sparked through Tawny's eyes. "Those days are rotten grime beneath my paws, Minty," she spat. "Never mention Twolegs again. I'm not a kittypet anymore"

The kittypet's eyes widened, pleading. "Please come back to the Twolegplace!"

" _Never!_ "

Minty stepped back, her tail curled between her legs. She cowered, her pelt trembling with fear and grief.

"Tell me, Minty," hissed Tawny, her claws sliding out, flexing on the stony ground. "When you went to ThunderClan, did you feel free and boundless?"

Minty didn't answer.

Tawny pressed on. "Did the scents of warm prey ever tempted you into living the wild?"

Minty still didn't answer.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Tawny turned her back on the kittypet. "I've had enough of you," she grunted. "I won't live unless I get my payback on ThunderClan."

"But what have they done to you?" murmured Minty in confusion.

"Quiet!" spat Tawny.

Before the white she-cat with orange splotches heard any more from Minty, she bounded out of the monster den. She scurried across the small Thunderpath, her heart pounding over the thrumming of her sturdy paws. Vengeance burned through Tawny's heart, making it nonexistent.

 _Sol's not here anymore. And with him dead, I could feasibly do a better job than him._


	2. Look HERE for info about Dove's family

*****Please use this 'chapter' for information regarding Dovewing's family (her kits, her kits' kits, etc.). This is up for extra purposes and for those who are lost with the fan-made family tree*****

 **DOVEWING'S FAMILY TREE**

 _(not the full ThunderClan allegiance, only the portion focusing on Dovewing)_

 **Dovewing and Tigerheart's kits**

 **Pineheart** \- sturdy brown tabby tom with a V-shaped nick in his ear (mate of Sorrelstripe; father of Foxpool, Lichenfrost, and Sootlight)

 **Morningfeather** \- light ginger tabby she-cat with amber eyes (mate of Fernsong; mother of Sloepaw and Olivepaw)

 **Goosewing** \- white she-cat with a plume for a tail and orange eyes (graduated medicine cat apprentice)

 **Dovewing and Bumblestripe's kits**

 **Briarkit** \- gray tabby tom

 **Larchkit** \- light brown tabby she-kit

 **Maplekit** \- tortoiseshell tabby she-kit with red tail

 **Seedkit** \- pale gray tom with dark bushy tail

* * *

 **EDUCATION**

 **{Mentor - Apprentice}**

Cloudtail - Sloepaw

Thornclaw - Olivepaw

* * *

 **TRIVIA**

Pineheart, Morningfeather, Goosewing, Briarkit, Larchkit, Maplekit, and Seedkit are all neices/nephews of Sloepaw, Olivepaw, Foxpool, Lichenfrost, and Sootlight.

Briarkit, Larchkit, and Seedkit were named after Briarlight, Larchkit (Birchfall's sis), and Seedpaw (Lilyheart's sis).

Foxpool earned her -pool suffix in memory of Leafpool, who died of greencough in the _Dovewing's Decision_ fanfic.

* * *

 **AGES**

 **Pineheart** \- 34 moons old

 **Morningfeather** \- 34 moons old

 **Goosewing** \- 34 moons old

 ***Foxpool** \- 12 moons old

 ***Lichenfrost** \- 12 moons old

 ***Sootlight** \- 12 moons old

 **Briarkit, Seedkit, Larchkit, & Maplekit** \- all 3 moons old

 **Sloepaw** \- 8 moons old

 **Olivepaw** \- 8 moons old

 _* In the epilogue of_ _ **Dovewing's Decision**_ _and in the beginning of_ _ **Wind Storm**_ _, these three earned their warrior names very recently, so they haven't been as warriors for more than a moon._


	3. Beginning of Greenleaf

Sunlight shone through the stone hollow. Shadows stretched over the camp and light patterned along the backs of the cats. Prey-scent was warm and filled the air, making Olivepaw's mouth water. Olivepaw was curled up in her nest, her tail covering her nose and paws. Olivepaw had been dreaming of herself chasing down a squirrel through the woods, zigzagging past beeches and oaks. She looked like a fuzzy white rock with yellow tabby patches. The sun's warmth washed through her pelt, seeping to her bones. She could feel a purr rising from her throat.

A voice called from the entrance of the apprentices' den. "Olivepaw, wake up you fuzz-brain."

Groaning, Olivepaw blinked open her eyes groggily at the sound of her brother.

"Sloepaw," mumbled Olivepaw, curling up in an even tighter ball, her back facing towards him. "Leave me alone."

"Come on." Sloepaw stepped up and shook a paw at her shoulder.

Olivepaw hissed: "Just a few more seasons…"

Weight pressed on her.

Olivepaw bowled over, taken by surprise.

Olivepaw was lying on her back, her shoulders pinned down by Sloepaw, whose face was only a whisker away from hers. His eyes glinted irascibly beneath the shadow that hung over his face. His wiry frame shone brightly from the sunlight.

"Get up," pressed Sloepaw.

" _Never_ ," countered Olivepaw, shutting her eyes softly in mock-sleep.

Her brother let out an exasperated sigh and she felt the weight lift off of her. She peered one eye open after a few silent heartbeats. _Good_ , she thought in relief. _Maybe if I play it off…_

But Sloepaw had returned, pouncing on Olivepaw, sending the both of them stumbling in a ball of fur. Olivepaw swiped a sheathed paw at her brother's muzzle. The force of the paw swipe turned Sloepaw's head. He was on top of her once more and, his eyes sparking with satisfaction, raked his hind legs along her exposed belly with sheathed hind paws.

Using her hind legs, Olivepaw slipped Sloepaw's hind legs from beneath him, unbalancing him, and rolled over from beneath the golden tabby tom.

Sloepaw bowled over with a muffled thump on a nearby nest. He tousled up to his paws with moss clinging to his pelt and shook his fur. "Would you get up now?" he sighed.

Olivepaw flicked her brother's nose playfully with her tail-tip, her breathes coming in leisure pants. "Fine," she snorted. "I'll get up."

As Olivepaw rose up to her paws, movement sounded from nearby inside the apprentices' den.

Sparkpaw sat up in her nest, her tail curled around her paws. "No cat sleeps on a duty," she mewed.

Olivepaw turned her gaze at her, confused.

Alderpaw, Sparkpaw's brother, came up from behind her like a shadow. His muscles rippled beneath his dark ginger tabby pelt. "Weren't you supposed to be searching for Graystripe's ticks?" he meowed.

Humiliation hung over Olivepaw, her paws lightly kneading the ground. "Er…." She couldn't find the right words to come out of her mouth. "I was just getting in a few extra time on my sleep."

Alderpaw rolled his eyes. "Yeah, _right_ ," he meowed in disbelief. "We should've woke you up at _moonrise_."

What was Alderpaw talking about? It was Sloepaw that woke her up, not _him_. "Well, thanks for the assistance." Olivepaw stretched each leg in turn and arched his back and a comfortable stretch that shook her small body. She strode pass her brother and into the clearing. Olivepaw could feel Sloepaw right behind her.

The cats of ThunderClan were in their daily duties as usual. There was a hunting patrol that had been recently doled out by their deputy Squirrelflight. Lilyheart was sharing a vole with Snowbush, their heads close together, murmuring in light gossip. Olivepaw could not hear what they were saying but knew it was merely about the slipup that happened with Rosepetal last sunrise. Rosepetal had tripped over Larchkit near the edge of the clearing and had fell, face-first, as if her whiskers had carried the weight of all four Clans. Rosepetal had been silent and reserved ever since.

Sloepaw padded up past Olivepaw. "We should call our mentors," he suggested.

 _Good idea_. They hadn't been doing anything useful for the past sunrise. Maybe Cloudtail and Thornclaw weren't busy with their normal warrior duties, besides mentoring their apprentices?

Sloepaw darted away from her and scuttled towards Cloudtail, who was sitting down in a pool of light, grooming his bushy tail. He looked up in mid-lick and rose to his paws. The white senior warrior called over his shoulder for Thornclaw, who slipped out of the warriors' den, his pelt tousled with sleep. Olivepaw purred.

 _Have we ruined Thornclaw's beauty sleep?_

As Cloudtail and Sloepaw ran up to meet with Olivepaw, Thornclaw came walking after them at a much leisure pace. The large golden-brown tabby tom looked at his apprentice threw warming eyes.

"Alright," meowed Thornclaw, yawning afterwards. "Hunting or battle training?"

Sloepaw bounced on his paws. "Hunting, hunting!" he exclaimed even though Thornclaw wasn't talking to him.

Cloudtail went to give his own shoulder a quick lick. "Don't get your whiskers in a bunch," he meowed bleakly. "We've done the slightest of battle training"—he looked at Thornclaw and gave his tail a sweep—"so we'll do that." The white tom looked as if his eyes were lidded. _But why?_ He never really looked tired to begin with.

Sloepaw sulked.

Thornclaw was nodding approvingly. "We could do that," he suggested. "I feel that they've learned enough of hunting skills." With a long sweep of his tail, his ears angled towards the thorn tunnel. "Shall we get started?"

Though excitement was fizzing through Olivepaw's paws, she couldn't help but feel a sense of sympathy towards Sloepaw. She caught a furtive upset look from him before he pushed forward, his tail and chin held high. Though she knew that he was only forcing himself to look pleased with his mentor's decisions. _I wonder if he feels that Cloudtail doesn't listen to him_ at all.

As they strode through the thorn tunnel, the voices of her Clanmates rung out from behind.

"Hey, wait for us!" yowled Sparkpaw, followed by a set of thrumming paws.

"Yeah, we're coming with you!" called out Alderpaw.

Excitement fluttered through Olivepaw. The other two apprentices showed up with their mentors Molewhisker and Cherryfall. Molewhisker stood by Alderpaw and gave him a playful flick on the shoulder with his tail.

"While they practice hunting skill," he meowed to his apprentice, "we'll practice with our battle techniques." _He must've overheard us._ There was no telling on what the brown-and-cream tom overheard throughout the camp nowadays.

Alderpaw bounced on his paws, squeaking excitedly. "Awesome! I can't wait!"

"Same thing goes for us," meowed Cherryfall standing close to Sparkpaw.

Sparkpaw looked up at her mentor. Her eyes shone brightly.

Cloudtail flicked his tail. "Let's go." The mentors and their apprentices scurried through the woods, the light dappling along their pelts, making Cloudtail's pelt flicker bright like untouched snow. They soon entered into a small clearing with a soft, sandy ground, patches of grass shooting out and dispersed all over. Cherryfall and Molewhisker went over to the other side of the clearing; Cloudtail and Thornclaw remained beside each other with their apprentices. Olivepaw felt her paws tingle with nervousness as the training sessions had begun.

"Alright," began Thornclaw. "Let's try to work on the basics." _He meant the hunting crouch._

The fresh scents of Newleaf filled the air. Bright, yellow sunlight filtered through the forest at an angle, tall shadows slanting across the ground. Shrubberies were ripe with brightly-colored flowers, where multiple bumblebees hovered peacefully from one flower to the next, collecting nectar. The light, airy birdsong carried along through the gentle breeze that rustled the slightest of whiskers.

Olivepaw hunkered and lashed her tail in the air, keen to catch an imaginary squirrel that stood in front of her.

Thornclaw shook his head. "You won't be able to hunt with that tail wriggling around in the air like that." He stood beside her and crouched down, lying his tail flat, parallel to the ground. "Remember to always keep your body low to the ground."

Olivepaw studied his posture and lowered her tail, along with levelling her small body closer to the ground. She earned an approving nod from her mentor.

"That's better," commented Thornclaw. "Now sneak up closely behind it with your haunches low as well." He demonstrated this by lowering his haunches, slithering up in a swift pace. Olivepaw tried the move once he had finished. "And try not to wobble so much," he put in but not in a strict tone. "It could swash around all the leaves that could be around you during leaf-fall."

Olivepaw flared her nostrils and took a deep breath. She tried not to let the senior warrior's words sting her. _I honestly think that I done that flawlessly_ , she thought exasperatedly. But she knew that no cat was perfect. She only messed up once and she'd mess up as many times as she could. But Olivepaw knew that she'd get it next time, whenever that was.

"Let's move on to battle moves," meowed Thornclaw smoothly.

Excitement fizzed through Olivepaw's spine and down to her tail-tip. _This is going to be great!_

From nearby, in the training hollow, Sloepaw scurried over and stood in front of Olivepaw. "Hey, Olivepaw, you won't guess what I just learned!" he exclaimed.

"What is it?" meowed Olivepaw inquisitively.

"This!" Taken by surprise, Olivepaw's nose was cuffed playfully by Sloepaw's sheathed forepaw. The air was filled with Sloepaw's _mrrows_ of laughter. Olivepaw flattened her ears and bared her teeth.

"That wasn't funny!" she hissed. "Get serious, you moron!"

Sloepaw twitched his whiskers. "Everyone always fell for that," he snickered.

Infuriated, Olivepaw's fur bristled around her tufty shoulders. "Get out of my way, you mouse-brained bee!" she snapped. She swatted a forepaw several times exasperatedly in between Sloepaw's ears. The very dark gray tom cringed, striking back with sheathed paws. Olivepaw was smacked hard in the face and soon the two siblings were in a plume of dust clouds, scrapping and rolling in the dust.

Cloudtail scurried over, his fur bushed out to look twice its size. "What do you think you two are doing?" he growled. Olivepaw felt teeth being tightened around her neck scruff as Cloudtail separated her from her brother. Once he placed her down, he sighed crossly, worn-out with stress. "Sloepaw, don't ever leave your place until you've gotten that front paw blow perfectly. Do you want to become a warrior or not?"

Sloepaw stood up and shook plumes of dust out of his fur. "But I—"

"Don't even _think_ about arguing with me," snarled Cloudtail. "Bring your tail over here. Don't say a word to Olivepaw until your training is over for today."

Sloepaw had his lips shut tight, indistinct annoyance sparking through his eyes. He flicked his tail-tip and lowered his head, following after his mentor. As much as Olivepaw knew that Sloepaw was a complete hairball to deal with, she couldn't help but suppress her sympathy for him. She envied his positive attitude and spirit. Being scolded by Cloudtail was something that no cat would want to be under. Olivepaw knew that soon enough he'll get over it.

"Now, Olivepaw," meowed Thornclaw. "I won't fuss at you. I was just like that when I was a young apprentice. Always getting into trouble and be scolded at. Cloudtail's been having a rough morning and he shouldn't be letting his anger out on your brother like that."

Olivepaw looked over at the side of the training hollow, where Cloudtail and Sloepaw moved further away from her and Thornclaw. With paws sheathed, Sloepaw brought his forepaw down towards the white tom's head. Cloudtail dodged it and countered the attack, knocking Sloepaw off his paws. Cloudtail appeared to be nippy and uptight, as if he wanted the training sessions to end already.

"He still hasn't recovered ever since Brightheart died," murmured Thornclaw sadly. "She was bound to greencough many moons ago, before you were born."

Olivepaw felt a pang of pity for the surly tom. She made one final glance at Cloudtail while he helped up Sloepaw. "I'm sorry for his loss," she meowed sympathetically. "He's never really said anything about it…"

"And he shouldn't," meowed Thornclaw. "He doesn't want to be constantly reminded again and again that his mate was no longer next to him. But I feel that she is watching over him from StarClan, where she can get all the sleep and mice that any cat would ask for."

Olivepaw paused and lifted her gaze. She could feel her mentor following her gaze through his warm eyes.

Thornclaw looked down at her, a warm look across his face. "Now," he meowed. "Let's get back to our training, shall we? I'll show you the leap-and-hold."

Olivepaw nodded, feeling energy and anticipation seeping through her paws and up to her ears. She stood and watched silently as Thornclaw demonstrated the technique.

Thornclaw was far bigger than her. The golden-brown tabby had called Molewhisker over instead of his own apprentice. Tipping her head to the side, Olivepaw watched as Molewhisker met up to Thornclaw's side. Alderpaw was scampering towards them, standing a few tail-lengths away from the scene.

"I am a cat trying to defend myself," demonstrated Thornclaw. He angled his ears towards Molewhisker. "He is an enemy. To perform the leap-and-hold, your enemy must not know you're coming. This technique is specially used for small cats who are facing against larger opponents."

Olivepaw studied the two toms. They were both bulky and large in size. Neither of them were extremely smaller than the other, but Molewhisker was about a whisker shorter than Thornclaw.

"Molewhisker, face away from me," instructed Thornclaw.

The brown-and-cream tom turned around. Olivepaw saw his muscles loosening.

Thornclaw flicked his muzzle towards Molewhisker. "He doesn't know that I'm here," he mewed. "But he is found as a very hostile cat. Watch." Thornclaw crouched and bunched his haunches, kneading his hind paws on the ground, and springing up at the unaware Molewhisker, stretching out his forearms. He landed on top of Molewhisker and his weight had crashed the brown-and-cream tom down, his legs buckling beneath him. Clearly the golden-brown tabby's heavy weight had caught him by surprise for real. Thornclaw's forepaws were gripped tightly on Molewhisker's shoulders. Molewhisker flailed his arms around, trying to land a blow on the attacker. Thornclaw threw his muzzle at the back of Molewhisker's neck, biting it, his hind legs raking at his Clanmate's spine.

Olivepaw watched in horror. Was that part of the move? _Was Thornclaw biting him_ for real? She was surprised that Molewhisker hadn't let out a yowl of pain.

Finally, Thornclaw got off of Molewhisker and shook his golden-brown tabby fur.

Shock shook through Olivepaw's paws. "Did you really bite him?" she asked.

To her relief, Thornclaw shook his head. "I only bit him softly for a reason." _For a reason?_ Olivepaw gulped. Thornclaw continued as Molewhisker straightened up, shaking dust and clumps of grass off his fur. "Not only did I use the leap-and-hold, but I also performed the killing bite."

Killing _bite?_

As Molewhisker returned to Alderpaw to return back with their own training at the side of the hollow, Thornclaw circled around her. "Alone, the leap-and-hold is more of a position attack rather than an offensive attack itself. With the killing bite, it can be a very fatal technique." He paused in front of her and his eyes shadowed over. "All it takes is a strong bite to the back of the neck."

Olivepaw felt uncomfortable. "And it can kill a cat?"

"Why do you think it's called the killing bite? Let's practice it." Thornclaw turned his back towards her, his tail swishing side to side normally, as if he did not notice her.

Olivepaw's belly churned with uneasiness. Olivepaw was much smaller than her mentor, meaning that she was a perfect size for this. She hunkered low for a few moments before leaping up on top of her mentor. His back was wide and his shoulders were broad. Thornclaw reacted instantly. Her mentor was bucking and flicking his hind legs around like an angry horse. Olivepaw's forepaws slipped. She caught them at the side of his shoulders rather than on top of them. Every time Thornclaw's hind legs would touch the ground, she'd feel air until he brought his legs back up, striking her hind legs with a powerful force in an irritable pattern. Baring her teeth in frustration, Olivepaw held a firm grip on top of his shoulders. She found her hind legs and bunched her muscles there, raking his lower spine frantically with sheathed paws. Before Olivepaw could land the killing bite to the back of his neck, Thornclaw's weight disappeared in a heartbeat as he dropped to the ground, rolling over on his side. Olivepaw was clung to him like a burr. Surprise flushed over her as the massive tom rolled onto his back, squashing her. Olivepaw's face and body was compacted to the ground, dirt getting in her mouth. A rush of air crashed into her as Thornclaw was brought up to his feet, flinging her off with a shake of his shoulders.

Stunned, Olivepaw scrambled up to her paws, panting.

Thornclaw stood back up. "Well done," he commended. "You fought like a warrior."

Olivepaw's eyes shone brightly. Then they went dark with misinterpretation. "But why did you roll over me when Molewhisker didn't?"

"Glad you pointed that out," meowed Thornclaw gently, his eyes sparking with satisfaction. "When performing the leap-and-hold in a real battle, watch out for the drop-and-roll, its counter move. When latched onto a cat's back, he or she could drop like a dead leaf and roll over, squashing you like a beetle, before getting back up."

Understanding, Olivepaw nodded. She'd like to try the counter move on him but Thornclaw was far too big for her.

"The leap-and-hold could be both a strong and weak position," meowed Thornclaw. "Just be mindful of the time you put forth into it, or else all will fail."

 _Or else all will fail._ Those words echoed into Olivepaw's mind like a mist of raincloud. "So it's like a gust of wind," meowed Olivepaw. "Like wind, it'll either support the land and rocks around it or it'll topple everything in its path."

Thornclaw nodded. "You're learning fast. I'm very proud of you."

Pride flooded through Olivepaw as she puffed out her chest, chin high. For once, she had made her mentor congratulate her for something she had actually meant. During the past few training sessions, she would fumble up and Thornclaw would still acknowledge her. But for what? Wasn't someone supposed to be rewarded for doing the _right_ thing? Maybe that's what it took to be a mentor.

The sun was slightly past sunhigh. Shadows stretched across the clearing, striping over their backs and making Cloudtail look like a white tabby with broad, black stripes. Olivepaw and Thornclaw practiced the same moves over and over, along with a few others like the tail yank, which was fairly easy to Olivepaw. Birdsong had weakened to an occasional chirp that sung lonely in the woods.

Cherryfall padded up to them along with Sparkpaw. "It's time that we headed back over to camp," she suggested gently.

The others had met up at in the center of the clearing, nodding in agreement.

"It'll be best if we hunted along the way," proposed Alderpaw aloud, catching the eyes of the others. "That way, we could add to the fresh-kill pile to fill our bellies later."

Olivepaw liked Alderpaw's encouragements and suggestions. Between the stretching shadows the sunshine shone brilliantly, making Alderpaw's pelt burn like red fire. Allured, Olivepaw felt her belly flutter.

"Great idea, Alderpaw," meowed Molewhisker. "Let's get going before the sun goes down."

Olivepaw followed after them as they exited the small clearing. Finding her paws, she strode side by side with Alderpaw, who noticed little of her, his eyes fixed on the route ahead of them. She and Alderpaw were close friends. She had no clue onto why she felt this way near him: he belly flopping and fluttering as if she was being tickled by light, her ears and paws buzzing. But whatever it was, she was glad to be close to Alderpaw, next to him.


End file.
